Related Stories

But with the CFL and its players so far apart at the bargaining table — they’ve actually pushed away from it for the time being — for the first time, players won’t rule out a work stoppage this season to get what they feel is a fair deal.

“The league is in a great situation right now,” Blue Bomber receiver Cory Watson said. “It would be a shame for that to be destroyed. Is it possible? The way it looks, possibly. But hopefully not.”

Here’s how it looks: the CFL Players Association wants a percentage of league revenue, the same way the pie is divided in other sports.

But the league is refusing to return to that model, which was in place from 2006-09, offering only a hard salary cap.

“Its only fair to share the revenue,” Watson said. “From what I’ve been hearing, it’s the No. 1 issue. The other issues are small details you could compromise on. From what I’ve heard the league is stuck on their side, the way they see the sharing of the revenue. And the PA is stuck on their side.

“From what I can tell, there’s a lot of money on the table, and it would be tough to lose that.”

In fact there’s more money on the table than ever before.

The league’s new TV deal has more than doubled in value, to some $40 million per season.

CFL players, earning an average salary of around $80,000, have never been accused of being overpaid, considering the risk they put their bodies through and the length of their careers.

“No one’s arguing we deserve a bit of it,” Watson said. “It’s just the number is the key right now. It would be a shame to not have a season... because truly the ones who are going to really suffer are the fans. We don’t have a league without the fans.”

The issue has taken on added significance for Watson, who celebrated the birth of his first child, a girl, just three weeks ago.

Suddenly, a job and paycheque take on a whole new meaning.

“It’s a different off-season,” the soon-to-be 30-year-old acknowledged. “It puts your priorities in check, it really does. In terms of training, socializing, in terms of everything — Priority No. 1 is to make sure that she’s OK and has everything she needs.

“It would be a shame if something were to happen this year.”

Bargaining broke off more than a week ago, with the union to discuss its next move, and the league’s ultimatum, at its annual general meeting in Las Vegas, at the end of March.